Snowflakes
by Dark-heika
Summary: Daily prompt challenges. 6 - Spirits, part IV: "The moon waxes fast and wanes slow. It favors my dearest sister, and there's nothing I can do to change it. If that weren't enough, that pathetic girl dulls what time I do have. Why shouldn't I be angry?"
1. Play

Summary: Kaneki thinks rereading his favorite book for the nth time is a perfectly good way to spend his free time. Hide disagrees.

Rating: K+

Genre: Humor/ Friendship

Characters: Kaneki, Hide

Tags: Pre-Aogiri, video games, Hide totally cries over Disney movies, For all the wrong reasons

Word Count: 641

* * *

><p>"Kaneki. Hey, Kaneki." A sudden jab at his shoulder drew Kaneki's attention from the pages of his (nice, familiar) book, and to the somewhat-exasperated expression on his best friend's face. He arched an eyebrow. "You weren't listening, were you?"<p>

He shook his head.

Hide sighed, then perked up a like his best friend hadn't been ignoring him. Again. "I was saying, how many times have you read that book?"

Kaneki shrugged, mumbling something. Hide strained to make it out, then shrugged it off. It was either an "I don't know" or "A lot," and both answers merited the same response, really.

"Well, we have something to do today, then. Come on, man, I picked up some awesome new games the other day. You can spare a day to try them out with me, right?"

Kaneki knew he shouldn't. He couldn't trust himself anymore. He was better now that he was eating again, but what if...

He looked up to decline... and made the mistake of looking his friend in the eyes.

He could almost see the drooping ears behind the hopeful expression.

He really had been ignoring him lately, hadn't he?

"Alright," he said, and was almost immediately blinded by the grin thrown his way. Immediately after, Hide grabbed hold of his sleeve and started tugging him out of Anteiku. He glanced at Nishiki for sympathy and, getting only a smirk in response, resigned himself to a long day of repeatedly losing horribly.

At least it could be worse.

* * *

><p>"Come on, Kaneki, you're not even <em>trying!<em>" Hide whined, crossing the finish line in first place with a large gap between him and the other racers.

"You know I'm bad at these games," he said, concentrating on holding onto his precarious position at third... fourth place.

"Then you should try practicing! It's not that hard once you get good at it."

"I don't have the money, Hide."

"But _Kaneki...!_"

* * *

><p>Hide gaped at the screen. "How did you...?"<p>

Kaneki stared alongside him. "I don't..."

Sitting on the TV, unaware of the shock it had caused, a victory screen proudly proclaimed the half-ghoul's victory.

"So. When were you going to tell me you knew mortal kombat?"

* * *

><p>Kaneki squirmed in Hide's grip, trying to get comfortable without spreading the wet spot on his shoulder. "<em>Hide<em>."

The blond sniffled. "He just wanted to know what summer was like..."

"This isn't even a game, Hide..."

* * *

><p>"Yes!" Hide grinned, folding his arms back behind his head. "I told you I could win!"<p>

"I never doubted you."

"Even if it took me, like, an hour."

"You did fine."

"And would've been a lot easier if I'd had the right spell."

"I'm sure."

He grinned, then eyed Kaneki's half-empty cup. "You sure you just want coffee?"

The brunet carefully held himself back from blanching. "I'm good, thanks."

* * *

><p>"And you're sure you don't just wanna crash on my couch?" Hide leaned against the wall, watching his friend collect himself. "I mean, I know it's not that long a walk, but..."<p>

"I'll be fine, Hide." Ghouls didn't prey on other ghouls in the 20th ward. "This isn't the first time I've walked home after dark."

"Yeah, but..." he ran a hand through his hair, frowning. "What if some weirdo tries following you home, or something?"

Kaneki rolled his eyes. "Hide, trust me. Nothing's going to happen to me. I'll be _fine_."

After a moment, he sighed. "Just stick to main roads, then, okay? If you get yourself hurt again you'll end up ignoring me completely."

Kaneki flinched. "Sorry. I don't mean to, but..."

"Yeah, I know. Just... come on. Respond to my texts, at least. I can't be the only one trying here, you know?" He smiled weakly, watching as Kaneki headed for the door. "I'll see you tomorrow. I'll stop by Anteiku after class."

Kaneki nodded as the door swung shut.

* * *

><p>Notes: So. This little piece got started up when a friend and I started lamenting the lack of decent fics in our current respective fandoms. We decided the way to fix this was, obviously, to start up an ongoing prompt challenge, because why not?<p>

From here on out, I'm going to post a new chapter here every day, each one based off a prompt. Feel free to suggest them. I might even do them. Eventually.


	2. Birdsong

Summary: She just didn't understand.

Rating: K+

Genre: Angst/ Friendship

Characters: Touka, Yoriko

Tags: In which Touka overthinks things, Doesn't actually have that much to do with the prompt, but it brought the scene that started this to mind, so whatever

Word Count: 552

* * *

><p>"<em>You're beautiful..."<em>

The words haunted her. Softly spoken, they'd echoed across the suddenly-silent church like nothing during the fight had.

Perhaps it was the sheer wrongness of them. That Nishiki's girlfriend could say them, staring death in the eyes. She'd been blindfolded, not deafened. Surely she'd heard Touka's intent to kill her?

What could she possible find beautiful about something so blatantly meant to kill?

Her eyes slid back to the curtain of ethereal glow of her kagune half-curled around her, as though to protect her from the late autumn chill. Tried to appreciate the many colors shimmering against the dark night sky. Imagined herself, bloodstained, kakugan exposed, the single 'wing' ready to strike behind her...

She couldn't see it.

She couldn't understand it.

(She thought of Nishiki's girlfriend again, who'd let a ghoul eat her for his sake. Of Nagachika, Kaneki's friend, who'd started coming to their shop more and more often the more Kaneki tried to distance himself from him, and had easily been their most frequent human customer for the past several weeks. Would he still chase the half-ghoul with such determination if he knew the truth? Or would he laugh it off and tell his friend he was stupid for keeping it from him?

She didn't know anymore.)

The first human to discover her... it had only taken one. And then her entire family had been torn apart. It was the standard response everywhere you look: find a ghoul? Call the CCG. Watch them get hunted down like dogs, or maybe just walk away, going on with your daily life, and ignore that it was your friend, neighbor, lover that you had just sentenced to death.

It was there everywhere you looked.

What did Nishiki do... why was he so different?

(She thought of Yoriko – sweet, naive Yoriko, who she wasn't always sure remembered ghouls existed at all. Always one shortcut away from being reduced to so much blood on the walls and so many tattered pieces of flesh in the name of temporarily sating the hunger of a monster wearing human skin.)

As the eastern sky grew lighter, she stood, flexing the liquid muscle one last time before leaping away.

It wouldn't do for some early-morning jogger to spot her.

* * *

><p>"Touka-chan, are you alright?"<p>

She looked up at Yoriko, blinking. "I'm fine. Why?"

Her friend poked her shoulder. "You weren't paying attention in class." She slid into the chair next to her. "What are you thinking about?"

The best lies were woven from half-truths.

"Something someone said, yesterday."

Yoriko gasped. "What? Who? What did they say?"

Touka shrugged.

"Whatever it was, you shouldn't let it bother you! You're amazing, Touka-chan! Really!"

And there it was again.

She forced a small smile to her lips. "Thanks, Yoriko." The blonde looked like she was ready to reassure her again, so she spoke before she could.

(She thought of Nishiki's girlfriend, who thought a ghoul seconds away from killing her was beautiful, despite the barely healed wound on her shoulder from the when her own boyfriend tried to kill her. Of Nagachika, who'd recently taken to ordering black coffee every so often with the strangest look on his face, claiming he wanted to try to get what Kaneki saw in the stuff.)

"You're a good friend."

She didn't understand.

* * *

><p>Notes: And thus comes prompt number two, and my first attempt at writing Touka <em>and<em> Yoriko. I've ghost-written a couple things with Hide and Kaneki before, but these two? Nah.

Review and tell me what you think.


	3. Spirits I

Summary: "She was going to kill you."

Rating: K+

Genre: Supernatural

Characters: Hide, Kaneki, Touka

Tags: AU, Slight HideKane if you squint really really hard, Will have multiple parts, eventually

Word Count: 913

* * *

><p>Hide craned his neck, looking one way, then another. The forest stretched what seemed like endlessly around him, shadowed and silent. A light fog coated the green-carpeted floor a few paces away from him, and coupled with the undergrowth he lost sight of anything specific pretty quickly. Shafts of sunlight fell every so often, providing some measure of light, but did little to soothe his unease.<p>

He'd been on a walk with his new girlfriend. They'd gone by that one wolf statue, the one that seemed to creep everyone else out but only made him feel safer. And then…

He couldn't remember.

"She was going to kill you."

He jumped and spun on his heel. Behind him stood a boy about his age. His eyes were two different colors, one grey, one red in black sclera, and his hair was white as death. His hands were tucked into the pockets of his hoodie, but the nails on his bare feet were black.

"Who are you?"

The boy shrugged. "Didn't you hear what I just said?"

He eyed him suspiciously. "Yeah, I'm just more interested in something else right now, Mr. Sneak-Up-Behind-Me."

A slight smile. "It won't be the last time."

He glared again, and the smile dropped.

"The woman you were walking with, Kamishiro Rize. You aren't the first person she's lured into my forest." He looked away. "I didn't want her to kill you, too."

Hide blinked, and the boy was gone.

* * *

><p>It had been three days since then.<p>

Soon after… whoever he was had disappeared, Hide had decided that standing around in the middle of the woods wouldn't get him anywhere, picked a direction, and started walking. He'd figured out a few hours later that he was heading north when the sun started to set, but it didn't seem to matter. He couldn't find any landmarks or anything.

He could almost swear he was still exactly where he'd started.

More than that, though, he was starving.

He hadn't found a stream or any plant that even looked remotely edible since he'd started walking. He knew Mr. Jump Scare'd said he'd saved him from his murderous girlfriend, but then why did he leave him to waste away like this?

It was night, now. The full moon could be seen through the thick canopy of leaves overhead, and the cool air provided some measure of comfort to his exhausted form. The snatches of sleep he'd caught since coming here hadn't been enough, but even climbing into a tree didn't help him sleep when he constantly felt like he was being watched.

A rustle in the bushes caught his attention, and he snapped his gaze towards it to find…a rabbit?

After a few moments of staring at each other, the rabbit turned back to where it'd materialized from and hopped away. For a moment, Hide felt like slapping himself. Yeah, he had no idea how to cook rabbit, but it was the first thing he'd seen in days that was actually edible!

A moment later, though, the rabbit was back. Not feeling like looking serious gift horse in the mouth, he slowly began to approach the small creature, only for it to hop away a few times every time he drew near. It never ran out of sight again, though.

Eventually, it led him to a small clearing, and… _water_.

He could've kissed the thing.

He half-stumbled, half-ran to the stream, and immediately plunged his hands into the icy water. In the back of his head, he knew the water probably wasn't half as clean as it felt, that he could get sick from it… but he really didn't care just then.

"Idiot… I knew he'd forgotten."

He flinched, and fell backwards in his attempt to see who had crept up behind him _this_ time.

A violet-haired girl was leaning against a tree at the edge of the clearing, a trio of rabbits at her feet, her expression blank. What really caught his attention, though, was her eyes – black sclera, red irises – and the single wing folded behind her back, glowing with he wasn't sure how many colors.

"Who are you?" He rasped. He really had to stop meeting people this way.

She raised an eyebrow. "Are you going to drink or not?"

"Yes, but… who are you?"

She stared at him for a moment longer. "No one of importance. Now drink. I don't have all night."

After another moment, he turned his attention back to the stream. He dipped his hands back into the stream and brought the water to his lips. Perhaps it was just that he hadn't had any for the last several days, but it was the best he'd ever tasted in his life.

After several more handfuls, a tap on his shoulder brought his attention back to the girl. "Don't drink too much. Now I'm sure you're hungry."

He nodded, and suddenly food was there, all sorts of fruits and vegetables and breads. He dug into them greedily.

She sat silently for a moment, then spoke. "I apologize for the idiot. He forgets humans have needs at times. There will be others making sure he doesn't do it again."

He put down his plate for a moment. "Who are you guys, anyway?"

"Does it matter?"

"Well, I need something to call you at least, right?"

She paused. "Most of our names… you couldn't pronounce them. Mine included. But the one you met several days ago is Kaneki Ken."

* * *

><p>Notes: This one's a little weird. I don't usually do AUs, after all. But… I felt like trying something new today, and one of the songs I've been listening to inspired it.<p>

This was originally going to be quite a bit longer, but I'm trying to work up to a larger word count at a gradual pace. I can split it into multiple parts.


	4. Spirits II

Summary: As if he'd needed another sign this forest wasn't natural.

Rating: K+

Genre: Supernatural

Characters: Hide, Kaneki, Hinami

Tags: AU, HideKane if you squint, Kaneki's kinda weird in this, It'll make sense soon

Word Count: 1,075

* * *

><p>He'd been here a week.<p>

After he'd eaten his fill from the girl (he should probably figure out something to call her), he'd found himself falling asleep. Deep, dreamless sleep, unhindered by the sensation of someone watching him. When he'd woken up, the clearing was sunlit, fog was starting to roll in to lightly blanket it like it did everywhere else… and the clearing was just gone. That, too.

As if he'd needed another sign this forest wasn't natural.

As before, he'd picked a direction, hoped it wouldn't send him back the way he came from (though he was starting to think it wouldn't matter), and started walking.

The first day was almost agonizing.

The brief reprieve the girl had offered had been amazing. To have all that gone, as if he'd simply dreamed it up...

It was nearly sunset when he got an idea. The forest wasn't natural. That girl had implied that… Kaneki would be watching him or something, right? Or should be, at least.

He cleared his throat and spoke. "Hey… Kaneki, right? You there?"

"I told you it wouldn't be the last time."

He spun around – what was _with_ these people and appearing behind him? – and gaped. "Damn it, Kaneki! Don't you know rabbits _die_ when you give them heart attacks?!"

He tilted his head. "What did you call me for?"

He glared. "You dropped me in the middle of this place, and then don't even have the decency to keep me company?"

"Should I have been?"

"_Yes!_"

"... Sorry."

Hide took a moment to breathe. "I forgive you, okay? That girl from last night implied you guys aren't human. And with those eyes of yours, I can believe it. Just... don't do it again?"

Kaneki nodded. "Alright."

He stood for a moment, then spoke. "You know, I caught your name from someone who didn't introduce herself, either. So let's start over a bit." He held out his hand. "I'm Nagachika Hideyoshi. You can call me Hide."

Kaneki stared at his hand like it was something utterly alien to him, then slowly took it. "Kaneki Ken."

"Great. It's nice to meet you."

* * *

><p>The next few days were much more bearable. Kaneki had a habit of slipping away when he wasn't looking, but he'd always come back when Hide called for him, apologizing for running off. While Hide didn't like that his only companion left him so often, he always seemed so sorry when he came back that he couldn't help but shake his head and smile a bit.<p>

Contrary to first impressions, he was actually pretty nice. More than a little timid, and a bit spacey, for the lack of a better word, but nice.

(He still wasn't sure whether or not he believed him about Rize. But he was good at spotting liars, and he hadn't seen anything from Kaneki that made him think he was lying.

But just because he hadn't lied didn't mean he was telling the truth... right?)

* * *

><p>"<em>You're hungry?" He tilted his head in that way he did when he didn't quite understand something.<em>

"_Yeah. Humans need to eat, you know."_

_He nodded. "Right."_

"_Can you... do whatever it was that girl did? Make food pop up out of nowhere?"_

"_Sorry. But I know someone who can."_

Meeting Yomo was an odd experience. He never spoke. His face was always hidden behind a crow mask, his unreal eyes glinting from within. He brought food whenever Kaneki called for him, though, so Hide couldn't complain too much.

("That girl from before said most of you had names I couldn't pronounce," he'd started after Yomo had left. "Other than you and Yomo, who else is there?"

"I'm... other than me, there's Her, but we're the only ones. Yomo isn't his real name." He touched his tongue. "I can't pronounce their names, either, but I had to call them something. Most of them didn't like it the idea of new names too much at first, but we worked it out."

"So you gave them nicknames?"

Kaneki stared at him for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah. Nicknames."

"So what do you call that girl I met?"

"Touka.")

* * *

><p>"Hide?"<p>

"Yeah?"

"I've been wondering... why are we walking?"

"Well, I was kind of hoping to find something that wasn't endless trees and fog eventually." Like a trail or something.

"Hide, this place isn't... it goes on forever. You'll only find something different if one of us makes something."

He stopped, turning to look back at the snowy-haired boy. "One of us...?"

He tapped the skin under his blackened eye.

"Oh." He thought for a moment. "Well, thanks for finally telling me. I don't suppose you could...?"

He shook his head. "The others tell me I could, and I've seen Her do it before, so they're probably right. But I don't know how. I can look outside and bring things in, but I can't make, and I can't take them out." He shifted. "Sorry."

"It's fine. I guess that's why you call Yomo whenever you need to get me food?"

He nodded, still looking guilty. "But, Hide..."

"What?"

"I brought you here. So the others think it's my job to get you out. And I don't know how, and no one else knows how to teach me. Sorry."

Hide blinked, and Kaneki was gone.

It was more than a few hours before he'd said enough to thin air to convince him he could come back again.

* * *

><p>"Why did you bring me here, anyway?"<p>

Kaneki shifted to look at him. He'd managed to find them a clearing, though given the waning-but-still-mostly-white moon overhead, he was pretty sure Kaneki had been responsible for it.

("We all have little things that we're tied to, that we need to take care of," he'd said when Hide finally asked him where he kept disappearing to. "The plants, the animals. Touka even has some power over the moon."

"So you're like... nature spirits, or something?"

"I guess.")

The snow-haired boy shrugged. "She was going to kill you. I know her. She always kills the people she brings here."

"Okay," he could figure out whether he actually believed that some other time, "but why me? You keep saying she's killed people in your neck of the woods before. So why did you save me?"

He was silent. For a moment, Hide was beginning to think he wouldn't answer at all. And then, "Because I know you."

He wouldn't say anything more.

* * *

><p>Notes: Part two of this weird little thing. Part three will be up tomorrow, and will hopefully be the end of it.<p>

And thus we get some more back story about this forest our main character's found himself in. Kaneki has a lot of the answers, but not all of them, and he either doesn't think about or just doesn't want to give up the ones he does have, either.

There's a little foreshadowing to all three of the potential opponents I can use for the climax. We'll likely be meeting all of them in the next piece, though. Can anyone guess who?


	5. Spirits III

Summary: She smiled again. "Nice to meet you, Hide-san. Thank you for keeping Nii-chan company."

Rating: K+

Genre: Supernatural

Characters: Hide, Kaneki, Hinami

Tags: AU, Hinami being adorable, a little short compared to the last two, but oh well

Word Count: 636

* * *

><p>"Nii-chan!"<p>

Hide stared as a slight figure rushed out of the fog, pouncing on Kaneki with a bright little smile and wrapping her arms around him. He swept her up, smiling. "Hinami! I didn't know it would rain today."

Hide looked up. Yeah, it looked clouded through the trees, but it wasn't...

She stuck out her tongue. "That's 'cause I didn't tell you!" She turned her attention to the blond. "Is this your new friend?"

He looked at her right back. Brown hair framed her face, and the spirit eyes looked... actually kinda cute on her. A pair of butterfly hairclips were pinned up in her hair, and...

Oh. Wait.

A pair of butterflies nested in her hair, clinging to the strands, and the soft colors complimented her dress beautifully.

Kaneki nodded. "His name is Hide."

She inspected him, looking him over in a way that made him think she was looking into his heart directly. After a moment, she smiled again. "Nice to meet you, Hide-san. Thank you for keeping Nii-chan company."

He ran a hand through his hair. "Thanks. Nice to meet you, too, erm..."

"You can call me Hinami."

"Right. Nice to meet you, Hinami-chan."

She grinned.

* * *

><p>Hide had to admit, it was nice being around someone who could actually manipulate the forest like it was apparently supposed to be. Don't get him wrong, Kaneki was great, but... there're only so many things you can do in a flat forest with trees and fog as far as the eye can see and pretty much nothing else.<p>

Hinami greatly changed up the routine, though. The ability to materialize swimming pools when he hadn't had a bath in he didn't want to think about it too much was very appreciated.

"Can you tell us a story, Hide-san?" She asked him after they were laying out in the fading sunlight and drying.

"What about?" He mumbled.

"Just... anything. I've never been outside."

"Alright."

Turns out, the sweet little girl liked horror stories. And based on Kaneki's wide eyes and taken expression, so did he.

Hide talked himself hoarse long after the sun had set, until the three fell asleep under the clouded sky.

* * *

><p>Hide's first inkling of awareness was a harsh nudge at his shoulder, followed shortly by another. Soon, someone was shaking him away. "Alright, alright, I'm up..." he slurred, blinking the sleep from his eyes.<p>

Kaneki was staring at him, wide-eyed. His single red eye glowed in the dark, and Hide could see Hinami watching them from a short distance away. "We have to move," he spoke low but quick, "_Now._"

And then he seized Hide's wrist, pulled him to his feet, and half-dragged, half-lead him through the woods, picking up speed until they were running.

"Kaneki," Hide started, "where are we going?"

"Away from here."

"Is this about those stories I told you earlier? You know they were just stories, right?"

He shook his head, not speaking again.

Hide thought about asking him about the whole arrangement again when he heard it – from behind them, a rustling as something ran through the undergrowth, lighter than the wind. Snarls echoed through the bushes behind them, and something knocked him from Kaneki's death grip on his wrist, rolling through the bushes before coming to stop.

He picked himself up, looked back towards his comrades... and barely choked back a scream.

Crimson eyes were burning above him, framed by dark blue hair that was almost black in the low light. Two wings, glowing murkily with various colors (_A bit like Touka's_¸ he thought) were folded around and behind his shoulders like a cloak. A sneer curled his lips as he looked down on Hide with utter disdain.

Kaneki emerged from the fog, Hinami clinging to his arm, not taking his eyes off the newcomer. "Hello, Ayato-san."

* * *

><p>Notes: A little short this time, but school started again today, and I have things to do on Tuesdays. It seemed like I obviously wasn't finishing this tonight, so I stopped here. A little short, but oh well. It met my target word count.<p>

As you can see, this obviously isn't the end of this saga. And I can tell you right now, it won't be the end of it tomorrow, either, since I decided I wanted all three of my potential antagonists to make an appearance, and it also seemed kinda silly to throw them all in at the end at once.

I'm guestimating two or three more segments this time. One to finish this bit off, and either one or two more after to wrap it up, depending on how long the next bit ends up being. We'll see.

Also, I didn't have time to edit like I usually do. I don't know whether the quality drop will be noticeable or not - the thing I usually end up doing is switching around phrasing a bit to fix up the characters' individual voices. But if it is, I should be back to the usual standard tomorrow.


	6. Spirits IV

Summary: "The moon waxes fast and wanes slow. It favors my dearest sister, and there's nothing I can do to change it. If that weren't enough, that pathetic girl dulls what time I do have. Why _shouldn't_ I be angry?"

Rating: ~T

Genre: Supernatural

Characters: Hide, Kaneki, Hinami, Ayato

Tags: AU, Ayato being pissed off, but that's not really anything new

Word Count: 1817

* * *

><p>"Hello, Ayato-san."<p>

The furious gaze snapped to the snow-haired boy, and then shifted slightly. _Behind him_. Hinami, clutching at Kaneki's arm like a lifeline, shrunk back, cowering as the unfamiliar spirit's full attention fixed on her.

"There you are… you little _brat!_" He lunged towards her, wings spreading, and Kaneki barely pulled them both out of his way in time.

(The clouded appendages sliced through trees soundlessly, seeming to ignore any semblance of resistance. Ayato seemed completely unphased when the thick wood crashed to the ground. It could have just been the spirits' ability to manipulate the forest, but Hide wasn't so sure.)

Kaneki glanced at him. Just once.

Then turned and ran.

For a moment, Hide paled… then Ayato followed him, as though Hide didn't even exist.

_Leading him away…_

He curled up against the broken tree and began to wait.

* * *

><p>Being shaken awake, after last night, wasn't how Hide imagined his morning going. But after his initial moment of panic, seeing Kaneki and Hinami (unharmed, thank <em>god<em>) was worth it.

Of course, just because they didn't seem hurt didn't mean they weren't. He looked them over thoroughly (weight wasn't distributed oddly, no one was clutching at anything, neither of them looked particularly exhausted), then breathed a sigh in relief. "You're okay. You're both okay." He looked at them. "Where did he...?"

"He disappears when the sun rises," Kaneki answered. "If we outlast him, he'll go back to sleep before he can hurt us."

"God." Hide ran a hand through his hair. "Why would he even... Why did he come in the first place?"

Kaneki shrugged, but Hinami looked away. _Guilty_.

"Hinami-chan...?"

"He doesn't like it when it rains," she said nervously, "He always blames me when it does."

"Wha...?" He blinked. "Why would he blame you for the rain?" It wasn't like she could control it or anything, right...?

She looked at him, eyes watery. "Because I'm supposed to be the rain spirit."

* * *

><p>(In another place – blackened, lit only by the occasional, faded blue lines of rippling light – a lone form grazed fingers through dust, red eyes fixed on his sleeping sister.<p>

She'd wake just in time to have a few hours with him before he fell asleep for her half of the cycle.)

* * *

><p>It had taken quite some time before Hinami had calmed enough to speak again. When she finally did, the words came soft and slow. "When a spirit has a child, that child holds at least part of their domain. Since spirits can live forever, and most don't like sharing their power, they try to avoid it. But my parents decided to have me."<p>

She held out a finger, and a butterfly fluttered over to land on it. "My dad shared the rain with me, and my mom shared her butterflies. They give me power, and I rule them with it. Or... I should."

She dropped her hand as the butterfly flew away.

"Mom and I shared our domain equally, but I... I never liked the rain. Butterflies are easy to handle, but the rain is part of storms, and... it scares me. Dad used to handle it, but..." She choked back a sob.

"There was a scientist. I don't know what he did, but mom and dad went to sleep and never woke up! I've tried giving them power and tugging on theirs, but it's like they're not even there!" She drew her knees up to her chest. "And whenever I'm not managing their power, it's like no one's taken it! I keep waiting for dad to reign in the storms and then he doesn't, and-"

"Hinami..." Hide interrupted her. "I'm sorry I brought it up. I shouldn't've."

She shook her head, breathing deeply. "You didn't know."

* * *

><p>"So," Hide started. They'd spent most of the day relaxing, but it had been noticeably tenser than the last. They were all just waiting for the sun to set, and now...<p>

Deep orange rays filtered through the leaves, breaking past the 'clouds' visible in the sky. They'd dim to shadows in a minute or two, heralding the coming night.

"What exactly are we going to do about Ayato?"

Kaneki and Hinami shared a glance. One determined, one nervous. "We," Kaneki started, "Won't do anything. I'm sorry, Hide, but..."

"You're going to leave me behind again." He thunked his head back against the tree he was leaning on. "Of course."

"Sorry." Kaneki said again.

"Yeah, I know. I can't run all night."

"He'll probably leave you alone if we aren't..."

"I get it." And he did. "Doesn't mean I gotta be happy about it, though..."

Hinami tugged at Kaneki's wrist. "Nii-chan, we should go soon."

"Yeah." He stood. "I'll be back at sunrise. Sorry."

The blond waved him off. "Go. Keep her safe."

He didn't have to look to tell neither of them were in the clearing anymore.

* * *

><p>Being shaken awake was rapidly becoming familiar. When Hide realized it wasn't Hinami or Kaneki or anyone familiar, recognizing <em>Oh fuck<em> in their place, he scrambled to his feet, backing away slowly.

Ayato glared at him. "So they did leave you behind..."

"Listen, Ayato, right? I don't know what problem you have with Hinami, but it isn't her fault." And he didn't have anything to do with it!

His eyes narrowed "The moon waxes fast and wanes slow. It favors my dearest sister, and there's nothing I can do to change it. If that weren't enough, that pathetic girl dulls what time I do have. Why _shouldn't_ I be angry?"

He walked forward, and Hide backed up. Right into a tree. Next thing he knew, his hands were pinned above his head, and those wings that _cut through trees like air_ were extended rather threateningly.

"Call for them," he said. "There's power in names. Call for the bug and the brat." He plucked a feather and _holy fuck that wasn't a feather_ from his wing and held the razor-sharp crystalline knife to his throat. "Or else."

Hide swallowed. He didn't want to die. And he was pretty sure, spirit world or not, that getting his throat sliced open wouldn't lend itself to the goal of continued life.

On the other hand...

_Hinami laughed as Hide tugged a hesitant Kaneki into the pool she'd made. It was obvious the snowy-haired boy had never tried swimming before. The blond grinned as he engaged his friend in a splash war, mischief playing on his expression as he sneakily aimed at Hinami instead._

_She blinked at him, startled at being suddenly all wet, then smiled. It wasn't a very nice smile._

_And that was how Hide learned to fear water-elementals while he was remotely near water._

Ayato's grip tightened on the blade at Hide's continued silence. He drew back his hand, ever so slightly (broadcasting his movement – giving Hide one last chance to submit) when—

"Stop!"

Both their attentions were snatched to the other end of the clearing. Hinami stood, panting, and Kaneki gripped her shoulder, tense and ready to attack (or be attacked) at a moment's notice.

Ayato released Hide with a smirk. "So you did come... Are you ready to stop running, brat?" He took a step towards her.

She bowed her head, looking anywhere but him. "I-I'm sorry!" She stammered, "About the rain. But ever since that man came, mama and papa—"

"Don't you get it, you idiot?!" He snarled, patience suddenly gone. "Your parents are dead!"

And then Kaneki tackled him.

Even from the start, Ayato was clearly a more experienced fighter than Hide's friend, dodging hits Kaneki took, moving and countering where Kaneki tried to press advantages, and not giving the snow-haired boy the room to do the same. He was quickly distracted, however, by Hinami rushing towards him, worriedly placing a hand against his bruises.

He smiled at her. "I'm fine, I'm fine."

"But you were hurt..." She whimpered. "And you're not healing."

(A glance at the fight behind him showed the cuts Kaneki had gained closing seconds after he got them. Hide wanted to whistle. He didn't.

He did wonder if the two were really as unhurt as they'd seemed the night before, though.)

"I am. Just... slower. Than that." He gestured at the two. After a moment, she nodded.

"I'm sorry."

He grinned. His wrists hurt. He could still feel his heart hammering. But... "Don't be."

She watched him for a moment, then stood, fists clenching in the fabric of her dress. "Alright."

As Ayato batted Kaneki away from him again, Hinami jumped into his flight path, catching him. She hugged him, watching his wounds close. "Thanks, nii-san. I can handle things from here."

Ayato stared. "You're kidding. You? You can't do anything but run."

"It's not new moon yet," She said, "And I'm at my strongest when it's raining"

And then there was water.

Glittering despite the lack of light, the clear liquid appeared between her shoulder blades, stretching outwards in an intricate design. As the streams wrapped around and flowed into one another, Hide almost found himself laughing.

_Butterfly wings_.

And then she flew at him.

In contrast to before, there wasn't an obvious difference between them. As Hide watched, he realized that they were evenly matched. Hinami was moving and healing faster, and seemed to have more power behind her attacks, but Ayato made up for it by being the more experienced fighter.

(He had to wonder who he'd found to practice on. Ayato was the first person he'd seen around here that seemed interested in fighting with the others around here.)

The battle seemed to go on forever, until suddenly, everything seemed to freeze.

A single shaft of sunlight fell through the trees, dimming almost immediately after. Then another, and another. Ayato fell to the ground, clutching at his chest. His eyes narrowed, no, drooped, and strength seemed to flee from him with each breath. "I... I don't want to... please, not yet...!"

Hinami's wings folded back behind her, and she walked to him before grabbing his hands. She smiled. "I'll be gone before you wake up. I promise."

He stared at her for a moment, then looked away, teeth clenched. "... Thanks."

(Hide blinked, and found he'd faded into the mist.)

* * *

><p>"So you're leaving?"<p>

She nodded. "I'm only awake when it's raining."

Hide blinked. "But..."

"It doesn't rain often. I know." She smiled. "But that's life. The most powerful of us are bound to something else. And when that something isn't there, we can't be here either."

Hide was silent for a moment. "I'll see you again someday. Alright?"

Her smile grew brighter, and she nodded. She turned to Kaneki and hugged him. "Bye, nii-chan."

He smiled. "I'll see you soon, Hinami."

And then she was gone.

Hide didn't even blink this time.

Whoa.

* * *

><p>"So," he started, eager to break the silence that had lingered since Hinami had gone. "What's your domain, anyway?"<p>

Kaneki leaned back, expression blank. "I don't know."

* * *

><p>Notes: Gah, I've never tried writing a fight scene before. I scrapped my first few attempts and ended up deciding to just skim over it. Sorry if it's less than what you were expecting. And this is pushing pretty close to the deadline, isn't it? Ah, well... it still works, right? Anyway, that's another segment done. I should finally finish this either tomorrow or the day after. And then it'll be back to my regular prompting.<p>

The relationship between a patron anything and its domain is always interesting to consider. Does the patron god of fire get hir power from fire? Or is fire something separate from hir that s/he can control? Or maybe it's an aspect of hirself, with every flame being a little piece of hir.

Here, it's a bit of both. And while some of those domains kind of take care of themselves, there are some of them that need a bit more micromanaging.

On another note, that thing with the moon. Rabbits are associated with the moon in Japanese folklore, for those of you that don't know. I'm not sure about outside of America, but ever heard of the man in the moon? In Japan, it's a rabbit.

So, the 'black rabbit' is the dark side, and the 'white rabbit' is the light side. It works well since Ayato is the younger sibling, and the corona frequently makes the moon look fuller than it really is. Even if he and Touka were 'born' at the same time in this 'verse, he'd be 'younger,' since he'll have spent more of his life asleep as a result. As you can see, he's less than happy about the arrangement. But I'd like to think he and Touka would've had a lot of forced time together in which to work things out by now. The moon is how old again?

Thanks for reading, as always.

~DH


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